St. Hripsime chapel in Aleppo hosts memorial service for innocent victims of Genocide

April 26, 2011 - 20:10 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - On April 25, St. Hripsime chapel in Aleppo hosted a liturgy, followed by a memorial service for innocent victims of 1915 Genocide.

Representatives of different confessions in Aleppo, diplomats accredited to Syria and Armenian community attended the event.

In the evening, Yesayan center hosted a ceremonial event, with Armenia’s Consul General Ashot Manukyan, Berio Armenian Apostolic Church head, bishop Shahan Sargsyan delivering statements, Armenian Foreign Ministry press service reported.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.